James is a big data and data warehousing technology specialist at Microsoft. He is a thought leader in the use and application of Big Data technologies, including MPP solutions involving hybrid technologies of relational data, Hadoop, and private and public cloud. Previously he was an independent consultant working as a Data Warehouse/Business Intelligence architect and developer. He is a prior SQL Server MVP with over 30 years of IT experience. James is a popular blogger (JamesSerra.com) and speaker, having presented at dozens of PASS events including the PASS Business Analytics conference and the PASS Summit. He is the author of the book “Reporting with Microsoft SQL Server 2012”. He received a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Engineering from the University of Nevada-Las Vegas.

Database Recovery Advisor is a new feature in SQL Server 2012 that introduces significant user experience enhancements to the ways DBAs can now restore databases using SQL Server Management Studio:

An enhancement for point in time recovery using a new visual timeline feature, which consists of a Backup Timeline graphical display that presents the backup history of the database and the available points in time to which the user can restore the database. Currently the only way to do this is through T-SQL.

Algorithms to streamline identifying the right sets of backup media to get the database back to a specific point in time. You will be able to build a restore plan for you based on available backup files (database, log, etc.) in a folder even if you don’t have any msdb backup history. It can also handle split backups.

The ability to restore corrupt pages via a Restore Page dialog box instead of using T-SQL.